Gu La withdrew his gaze from the distant, snow-like figure and absentmindedly rubbed the railing of the Spirit Pagoda.
Seemingly sensing Gu La's stare, Wu Changkong glanced over. Upon realizing he was just a teenager, he gave him a quick once-over before turning away.
"Mr. Rodell, please follow me."
(T/N: I just realized that his alias 'Gula Rodell' sounds like Groudon when you say it fast. Damn I'm slow lmao.)
The octagonal badge on the staff member's chest refracted seven-colored rainbows as Gu La followed him onto the floating staircase. He stopped pondering further—now wasn't the time to approach Wu Changkong. His current status wouldn't allow him to meet the principal of Donghai Academy, but enrolling wouldn't be difficult.
With his talent, joining Zero Class would be a natural progression.
As they ascended to the upper levels of the Spirit Pagoda, someone was already waiting in the reception hall.
The eighteen sub-tower masters were all Titled Douluo and wouldn't personally meet him. Instead, a Soul Sage steward named Zhao Tianyu handled the reception.
Inside the reception hall, Zhao Tianyu looked up from the soul-guided blueprint. This Soul Sage steward had met Gu La at a banquet before, and Gu La had deliberately gathered information about him.
"Gula, you've arrived just in time."
Zhao Tianyu tapped the documents in front of him with his fingers. "Five Spiritual-attribute plant spirit souls transferred from headquarters, including one derived from the bloodline of the Myriad Beasts King."
He emphasized the last few words, his gaze sweeping over the boy's seemingly frail shoulders. "I hope you can take it off my hands."
Zhao Tianyu stood up and led Gu La to a private room. Inside, separated by a transparent protective barrier, five spirit souls were stored.
"You asked for Spiritual-attribute plant spirit souls—it was quite a challenge. Spiritual-attribute spirit souls are rare to begin with, let alone those derived from plants with low intelligence."
"I informed the tower master, who, out of respect for the federation, specially arranged these spirit souls for you. Hopefully, you'll find what you're looking for."
Gu La nodded knowingly. "Thank you, Brother Zhao, and the tower master for your kindness. I won't forget the help provided by the Spirit Pagoda or the federation."
At this, Zhao Tianyu's face lit up with joy. Anyone would appreciate gratitude, especially when they were the ones offering assistance.
"No need for formalities. Take a look."
Zhao Tianyu pointed inside the barrier. "That one—an eight-hundred-year-old Demon Eye Tree spirit. It's a spirit soul created by extracting the genetic material of the Myriad Beasts King and crossbreeding it with a Demon Eye Tree soul beast."
"This species excels in controlling plants, emitting psychic rays, creating illusions, and possesses certain toxins. It's very versatile, with strong control abilities and some offensive capabilities."
"Oh, I don't even know your martial soul yet. If you haven't broken through to Soul Lord, you can go to the Ascension Platform to upgrade your first soul ring to the thousand-year level. Once you reach Soul Lord, you can consider fusing with a spirit soul."
He assumed Gu La was young and likely hadn't reached Soul Lord yet, meaning his first soul ring was still at the hundred-year level.
Gu La forced a "bitter smile" and took the opportunity to flesh out his backstory while hinting at his innate talent. "Brother Zhao, what you don't know is that my family originally hailed from Dou Ling Continent. Our ancestors earned noble status by serving the Tian Dou Empire, but we were ostracized."
"When evil soul masters hunted us down, help came too late. I have twin martial souls. My first martial soul directly fused with soul rings to enhance my physique and spirit power. Unfortunately, after the elders passed away, that path was cut off, leaving me no choice but to come here to purchase spirit souls."
Zhao Tianyu's pupils contracted slightly, deeply astonished.
First, he was surprised that Gu La had directly fused with soul rings—a highly extravagant act in Douluo. Moreover, soul rings that couldn't increase in years offered poor cost-effectiveness.
Spirit souls could provide multiple soul rings and an additional spirit soul helper. Even without enhancing physical attributes or soul power, they far surpassed soul rings.
Second, he was astonished that Gu La possessed twin martial souls. Though humanity's population had grown to billions, making twin martial souls less rare than before, they were still synonymous with genius.
Of course, the advent of spirit souls and the Ascension Platform had diminished the advantages of twin martial souls when adding extra soul rings. However, the inherent full-soul power still attested to Gu La's extraordinary talent.
"It's truly regrettable."
Zhao Tianyu's eyes reflected sympathy. Soul rings couldn't increase in years like spirit souls and would eventually become obsolete.
After expressing his regret, he patted Gu La's shoulder reassuringly. "But don't worry. You can focus on cultivating your second martial soul. A Spiritual-attribute martial soul combined with the vitality of plant life holds great potential for the future."
As he spoke, Zhao Tianyu felt something was off. Soul rings didn't burden one's spirit power, so Gu La essentially had a normal twin martial soul capable of fusing with spirit souls. Why did he need pity from a single-martial-soul disciple?
He withdrew his hand and subtly changed the subject. "Since you call me Brother Zhao, I'll look out for you. Release your martial soul. If your soul rings and spirit souls align well, it's possible to fuse with the spirit soul and increase their years together."
"All right, Brother Zhao."
Without hesitation, Gu La released his Groudon martial soul—a peak-tier martial soul rarely seen even once every thousand years. In this era, such martial souls appeared roughly every few decades. There were also super martial souls with innate domains, but double Ultimate martial souls remained among the most elite.
The scorching heat filled the room, triggering the soul-guided barrier's alarm system, which emitted a shrill warning and blinding red lights.
Zhao Tianyu stared in shock at the imposing and fearsome Groudon, a question mark seemingly hovering over his head.
His martial soul, the Mighty Golden Bear, trembled instinctively under the overwhelming suppression of the earth attribute. Not a shred of fighting spirit could be mustered—the gap in martial soul quality was insurmountable.
"How dare you!"
A thunderous rebuke accompanied by nine soul rings descended. The sub-tower master, Zhou Tianshuo, shattered space as he arrived, his cloak adorned with an eight-level soul-guided matrix fluttering fiercely. However, when his gaze fell upon the dissipating martial soul phantom, his ninety-second-level soul power froze momentarily.
Gu La obediently reined in his aura but couldn't suppress a mischievous smirk. Only then did Zhao Tianyu realize his back was soaked with cold sweat. Suppressing the trembling in his voice, he explained the situation to the tower master.
"Tower Master, here's what happened…"
The sub-tower master, a middle-aged man, listened attentively, feeling the lingering heat in the air.
His eyes sparkled as he looked at Gu La. "Releasing your martial soul triggered a level-seven soul-guided barrier alarm, and its aura suppressed Old Zhao's Mighty Golden Bear. Could this be a double Ultimate martial soul?"
Zhou Tianshuo's soul power flowed through his fingertips as he retrieved a detection device. The fluctuating numbers on the detection screen made even this Titled Douluo's eye twitch.
"At this temperature, can a human really withstand such a powerful martial soul?"
The tower master thought for a moment. Given how many monsters existed in the world, one more wouldn't be surprising.
"Child, would you be willing to join the Spirit Pagoda? If you do, we can provide any spirit soul below ten-thousand years for your future cultivation."
Zhou Tianshuo deliberately emphasized the word "any."
This was Spirit Pagoda's standard recruitment tactic. Controlling the majority of spirit souls on the continent, it ranked second only to Shrek Academy in attracting geniuses.
'Wait, why didn't you bring Leng Yaozhu here? Joining the Spirit Pagoda versus apprenticing under Leng Yaozhu and then joining are two completely different paths with vastly differing treatment and future prospects.'
'And your offer lacks sincerity.'
Gu La was exasperated—he'd run into a Titled Douluo trying to exploit him. This was bullying an outsider unfamiliar with local policies.
He attempted to stall. "Thank you, Tower Master, but it's too sudden. I've just arrived on Douluo Continent and need time to think."
The tower master frowned. What was there to think about? But considering Gu La's talent, he decided to agree.
"Then take your time to con…"
"What's happening here?"
A cold, feminine voice rang out. A faint fragrance wafted in as golden tassels swept across the metallic floor, producing delicate sounds. The soul-guided lamps in the testing room dimmed simultaneously by thirty degrees, as if bowing to a higher presence.
A beautiful woman dressed in gold and red entered—the legendary Leng Yaozhu.
She had recently taken Gu Yue as her disciple and spent the past few months handling affairs at the Donghai Spirit Pagoda.
The phoenix feather hairpin adorning her hair shimmered with nine-colored brilliance. When her gaze fell on Gu La, she couldn't help but let out a soft "Hmm?"
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